Bedford Blues scored four second half tries to secure another Battle of Bedfordshire triumph on Friday night (6 February), beating local rivals Ampthill 35-13 in Round 16 of Champ Rugby.
Tui Uru’s first half try had given the Blues a slender 7-6 half-time lead, but second half scores from Joe Hill, Tommy Herman, Rory Ward and George Worth saw Bedford race clear for a comfortable win in wet conditions at Goldington Road.
Both sides were looking to bounce back from Round 15 defeats, with Bedford Blues earning a losing bonus point in an 18-13 loss at Hartpury, while Ampthill were comfortably beaten 41-14 at home to Worcester.
Read: Bedford Blues still second despite narrow loss at Hartpury
Ampthill were once the thorn in the side of the Blues when they made their first forays into Championship Rugby in 2019, but they have not won a competitive game against Bedford since January 2022, and that record was extended in what was a relatively meek showing.
After an initial opening burst from the visitors, it was the Blues who started the best with late call-up, Billy Pasco almost breaking clear only to find his excellent late pass to Lucas Titherington spilled after five minutes in slippery conditions.
Pasco, in for Dean Adamson after the Blues’ record try scorer failed a late fitness test, was in the action a lot in the opening throws, as both sides continued to try and find their feet, or indeed, their hands as knock-ons dominated proceedings.
The closest the Blues got to the try line in the first quarter came when Tui Uru pounced on a loose ball; kicking off multiple phases, ending with Ampthill holding the ball up near the posts to keep the game scoreless.
Another knock forward stopped Bedford in their tracks in similar fashion soon after, but it was Ampthill who were finally on the board first as former Blues man, Louis Grimoldby slotted a pair of penalties in quick succession on the half hour mark.
Bedford hit back immediately, earning a penalty straight from the kick off, allowing them to make territory up field and ending with Tui Uru crashing over from close range, with Will Maisey’s conversion putting the Blues 7-6 ahead.
Sione Va’enuku’s break clear threatened to get Ampthill back in the ascendency with the break on the horizon, but a misplaced pass – the latest of many in a cagey first half – put paid to the visitors’ best attack of the first 40 minutes, leaving Bedford a point ahead at half-time.
Blues run away with second half
Within two minutes of the second half, Ampthill were down to 14 men as another former Blues man in Charles Rylands was sin-binned, before a minor scrap ended with a talking to to both captains as the fractious nature of the game continued into the second period.
The yellow card was the momentum shifter the Blues were looking for.
It allowed them to find space to score their second; the ball running through the familiar hands of Day and Maisey before finding Joe Hill on the left wing to dive into the corner.
Maisey’s excellent conversion extended the lead to 14-6, and it was his brilliant cross field kick that almost found Hill again for a third try, only for the winger to spill it at the last.
The clash was beginning to look a touch more like October’s humbling, in which Bedford ran in ten tries in a crushing 66-12 win, as Fred Tuilagi was the latest to almost reach the whitewash, only to be held up with the Blues pressing on the gas.
Read: Ten try Blues demolish Ampthill to jump into play-off spots
The third try felt inevitable, and it came before Ampthill returned to a full compliment of players, as Tommy Herman broke through a pair of tackles to crash in a third, as the Blues created some breathing space on the scoreboard.
The bonus point try arrived by 55 minutes, as Rory Ward was on the scoresheet again to extend the advantage to 28-6, but while the Blues had found some of their famous fluency, the conditions continued to cause issues.
The final ten minutes were more notable for a pair of home debuts for Ben Griffin and James Bennett, while James Lennon was also introduced in what was his 100th appearance for the Blues, while the Ampthill effort petered out.
In truth, Ampthill had barely troubled the Bedford 22 in a second half largely dominated by Mike Rayer’s men until the 76th minute, when the back line broke clear and the ball eventually ended up in the hands of Josh Barton, who ran in the visitors’ only try of the night.
It ended up being a mere consolation, as the Blues regained their 22-point advantage with a minute remaining; George Worth racing clear to dive over in the far corner, much to the delight of the majority of the 3,414 in attendance.
Maisey put the cherry on the cake with another impressive conversion, securing a 35-13 win for the Blues.
It also extended their winning competitive run against Ampthill to seven, who remain 11th in Champ Rugby, with Bedford Blues guaranteeing they will finish the weekend in second.
The only other game on Friday night ended with a narrow 17-15 victory for Richmond over Nottingham, closing the gap to Ampthill to eight points, with the majority of the division playing in the traditional Saturday slots.
Cornish Pirates entertain London Scottish on Sunday.
For the Blues, focus turns to a bogey trip as they travel to Castle Park to face Doncaster Knights on Valentine’s Day, looking to ignite a love affair on a ground they have not won at since 2012.
